Grant County

LANGUAGE

The Census asks questions about language use at home to locate groups of people who speak a language other than English. Their isolation or integration into a primarily English speaking community can be determined by their ability to speak English proficiently.

Language Spoken at Home, 1990-2000

1990

2000

Number

Percent

Number

Percent

Only English

41,860

83.70%

48,887

71.67%

Spanish

6,926

13.85%

17,188

25.20%

Other Indo-European*

815

1.63%

1,687

2.47%

Asian Language**

315

0.63%

363

0.53%

Other

95

0.19%

89

0.13%

Total Population Age 5+

50,011

100.00%

68,214

100.00%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000

Language Spoken at Home:

Number

Percent

Spanish

9,742

56.68%

Other Indo-European*

796

47.18%

Asian Language**

109

30.03%

Other Language

34

38.20%

Total

10,681

15.66%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990

Language Spoken at Home:

Number

Percent

Spanish

3,558

51.37%

Other Indo-European*

172

21.10%

Asian Language**

140

44.44%

Other Language

10

10.53%

Total

3,880

7.76%

* "Other Indo-European" excludes English and Spanish. "Indo-European" is not synonymous with "European." French, German, Hindi, and Persian are all classified as Indo-European. Hungarian, on the other hand, is lumped into "Other Language."

** "Asian Language" includes languages indigenous to Asia and Pacific islands areas that are not also Indo-European languages. Chinese, Japanese, Telugu, and Hawaiian are all classified here.

Also note that ability to speak English "very well" is based on the self-assessment of those responding to Census questions, not on a test of language ability.